THE CANNON NEWS. Volume 6, Issue 1 November 2006/January 2007

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1 THE CANNON NEWS Volume 6, Issue 1 November 2006/January 2007 GREETINGS FROM THE COMMANDER In June, we attended the State Convention and once again were named an All-State Post! Quartermaster Rick Raskin and I may have received the honors, but we could not have done it without your hard work - Thanks! In July, Senior Vice Commander Pete MacLeod, Junior Vice Commander Steve Meade, and I attended the annual School of Instruction in Lynchburg. This was probably one of the best VFW School of Instruction I ever attended. In October we had planned to participate in the Fall Jubilee but the weather was terrible so I cancelled out. I hope all of you got out there and did your patriotic duty and voted. No matter if your candidate won or lost, we need to come together as a nation and move forward. We had a great turnout at our Veterans Day activities on Saturday, November 11. We had a brief Memorial the Manassas Veterans Memorial and afterwards we gathered at the Manassas Cemetery and placed Flags and Poppies on the graves of Veterans. Thanks to all who participated. I want to thank the membership for your confidence in me and allowing me to lead you for another term. There is a busy year ahead so be prepared to roll up your sleeves and get busy. Comrades, we mail this newsletter to approximately 300 people and keeping addresses current is difficult, so if your address changes, please let the Post know. This will save us money in postage and copies. As this Newsletter goes to print, our Great Country still has troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. Please keep our military in your prayers. The dreams and hopes of our country lie in the hands of these courageous men and women. SICK AND DISTRESSED Comrades, if you, or if you know of a fellow Comrade who is ill or in need of help, please call either Chaplain Ron (703) or Commander Sam (703) Remember, We honor the dead, by helping the living. Newsletter Editors: Sam & Valerie Nealey - (703) jvnealey@verizon.net or cmdr7589@verizon.net This is your Newsletter, therefore your input is not only welcome, but encouraged.

2 BINGO STILL NEED HELP!!! Comrades, our weekly is what is paying for our beautiful home and will help enable us to meet our goals for the future. I am looking for comrades to volunteer a few hours once a week. starts at 8:00 AM and is finished about 12:30 PM. We have some great volunteers at present, but they have worked hard the last few years and need some help. We desperately need at least one more Caller. Comrades, we need help, so please volunteer. New Department of Gaming rules allow for nonmembers to assist with in all aspects but a couple, so if you have a neighbor or friend that would like to help, get them out to. EXECUTIVE MEETING Executive Meetings are scheduled for the Monday the week prior to the regular Monthly meeting. The meeting is at 6:30 PM. See Calendar for dates. Note: All officers are requested to attend, and any member is welcome to attend. VETERANS DAY ACTIVITIES On November 11, an 8:30 AM wreath-laying ceremony was held at the Manassas Veterans Memorial. There were 9 Comrades and 6 Auxiliary members in attendance. Immediately following, a bouquet of flowers was placed upon the grave of our namesake Francis Cannon, at the Manassas City Cemetery. We also placed American Flags on the graves of Veterans in the cemetery. Those attending these activities then gathered at a local eatery for breakfast. Joining us this year was Past Commander Mott of the Myrtle Beach, SC Post 7735 and his daughter and Grandchild. On November 12th poppies were to be distributed at the Wal-Mart on Liberia Avenue. But, we had to cancel because the weather was miserable. I wish to thank Senior Vice Commander Pete MacLeod, Junior Vice Commander Steve Meade, Chaplain Ron Knowles, Quartermaster Rick Raskin and Service Officer Jack Battle for volunteering to help. I wish to especially thank Senior Vice Commander Pete MacLeod for coordinating the Poppy Drive. DISTRICT MEETING - NOVEMBER 19 The District 8 Meeting is Sunday, November 19, 2006 at 1:00 PM at our Post Home. Every member is invited to attend. Come out and see what is going on with other Posts in the District. So come on out, State Commander Doc Crouch will be in attendance. COMRADES, ONLY ONE COPY OF THIS NEWSLETTER IS MAILED TO EACH HOUSEHOLD. OUR NEWSLETTER IS FOR BOTH THE POST AND THE AUXILIARY. PLEASE SHARE!

3 NOTICE * NOTICE * NOTICE Parking is not allowed on Manassas Volunteer Fire Company property, your vehicle may get towed. If you are visiting the Post Home, either park on our property or the city parking lot about a half block up Church Street. MEMBERSHIP Comrades, our goal for 100% is 242 members, but the membership voted to achieve a goal of 103%, which is 250 members. To meet this goal we need to recruit new members. So far this year we have 211 paid members of which 145 are life members. There are 47 members who have not paid their dues. If you do not pay your dues by December 31, 2006 you will no longer be a member in good standing. If you have not paid your dues because of financial reasons, let me know we have ways to help you. NOTE: You now pay your dues directly to the National VFW. But, if you would rather pay them directly to the Quartermaster, we can handle that. Just send in your check and we will take care of the rest. Annual dues will be raised to $25.00 effective January 1, Also if you plan to convert to Life Membership you should do it by December 15, 2006, because the rates are going up greatly. ( See chart that follows). Contact Quartermaster Rick Raskin if you wish to convert to life member as soon as possible.. LIFE MEMBERSHIP AGE CURRENT NEW % Increase Under 30 $245 $ & Over HAVE YOU RECRUITED A NEW MEMBER LATELY? They are out there waiting to be asked. POST 7589 WEB SITE We now have a great web site which was established to keep you apprised of Post activities. Junior Vice Commander Steve Meade and Quartermaster Rick Raskin have done an excellent job, so please take a look at it and let them know if you have any suggestions or comments. All sorts of pertinent information has been placed on the site. It is an ever changing site so look at it frequently - it already has pictures from Veterans Day activities. The web site contains information on both the VFW and the Auxiliary. The address is:

4 PEARL HARBOR DAY DECEMBER 7 The Post will hold a wreath-laying ceremony at 4:00 PM on Thursday, December 7, at the Manassas Veterans Memorial on Main Street. Members, you are welcome to bring your family. Please dress for the weather and wear your VFW hat. MEMBER DATA SHEETS Comrades, elsewhere is this newsletter you will find a Member Data Sheet. The Post Quartermaster uses this sheet to verify your file information. Please keep us informed of your new address and/or telephone number. If you have submitted this form already, thanks, you do not have to submit it again unless you have changes. Comrades, if you have , please let the Quartermaster have it. HOLIDAY CHEER BOX DRIVE Lee Funeral Home, located at 8521 Sudley Road in Manassas, has a collection drive going on to help the morale of our young men and women in Iraq and Afghanistan. Drop by the funeral home between now and November 24th (1:00 pm- 5:00 pm) and they will give you a box and information booklet with complete details on how the program works and what you can put in the boxes that will be sent to our troops. Fill the box with goodies and return it to the funeral home by November 29th and they will send it off for you. VFW SHIRTS For those Comrades who missed the first order of new VFW Post 7589 shirts, we can still order a shirt or two for you. We are in the process of making a new order now. The cost will be $25.00 per shirt. Basic colors are Oxford (Gray), Dark Green, Faded Blue, and White. If requested, we can order shirts in Navy, Red, Black, Stone (Tan), or Light Blue. All shirts have three buttons and a pocket. The sizes available range from XS - 4XL. The shirts will have the VFW Emblem, Post Number and Manassas, Virginia. They are also available in long sleeve a slightly higher cost.. If you wish to order a shirt, please send a note with the color(s) and size you wish to order. It would help if you enclosed a check of $25.00 payable to VFW Post 7589 for the total number of shirts ordered and mail to: VFW Post 7589 PO Box 1873 Manassas, VA HOLIDAY SOCIAL - DECEMBER 9 On December 9, the Post will celebrate the holidays with a social from 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM at the Post Home - light refreshments will be served. Reservations are required so we can have enough food. See the flyer in this newsletter. At this time, I wish to extend holiday greetings to all of you and your families and hope the next year is filled with joy and success.

5 LADIES AUXILIARY 7589 NEWS Editor: Valerie Nealey ; jvnealey@verizon.net NEW MEMBERS Welcome new members Michelle Levesque - granddaughter of Joe & Nancy Dazzo and Elanor Doczi, Life Member Transfer from West Virginia. MEMBERSHIP & LIFE MEMBERSHIP FEES Our Auxiliary currently has 50 members (32 of which are Life Members). If you have not paid your 2007 membership dues by December 31, 2006 you will cease to be a member in good standing on January 1, Life Membership Fees are increasing effective January 1, If you would like to apply for a Life Membership, please contact Treasurer Valerie Nealey (703) and she will help you with the process - applications have to reach the Department Treasurer before December 29. HOLIDAY SOCIAL Our Holiday Social will be Saturday, December 9 from 2 PM to 5 PM. Escape from the hustle and bustle of the holiday season and join us for light refreshments. See the flyer in this newsletter. Please remember to respond by December 1. PEARL HARBOR DAY In recognition of Pearl Harbor Day, the Auxiliary will be participating in a wreath-laying ceremony held by the Post at the Manassas Veterans Memorial on Thursday, December 7 at 4:00 PM. GIFTS FOR VETERANS On Saturday, December 16 at 10:00 AM Christmas gifts will be distributed to the veterans at Birmingham Green Nursing Home. If you would like to volunteer, please call Valerie Nealey at HOLIDAY CHEER BOX DRIVE Help brighten up a military holiday - stop by Lee Funeral Home on Sudley Road and pick up a box and information booklet with complete details on how the program works from now until November 24th. Fill the box with goodies and return it to Lee Funeral Home by November 29th to ensure delivery in time for the holidays. NEW WEB SITE The Post has a web site now and there is a link to our Auxiliary. We are working on getting more info on it so, please check it out at UPCOMING EVENTS NEXT MEETING: Monday, December 4-7:30 PM WINTER CONFERENCE: January 19-21, 2007 in Williamsburg DISTRICT MEETING: Sunday, March 18, 2007 at 1:00 PM at Fredericksburg Post 3103 If you know of any ill members, call Chaplain Betty Knowles H a p p y H o l i d a y s

6 December 2006 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat VFW & Auxiliary Meetings 7:30 pm Pearl Harbor Wreath Laying 4 pm 8 9 Holiday Social 2 pm - 5 pm Gifts to Birmingham Green 10 am /31 25 Christmas January 2007 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 New Years Day 2 Executive Mtg. 6:30 pm VFW & Auxiliary Meetings 7:30 pm Winter Conference Williamsburg 20 Winter Conference Williamsburg 21 Winter Conference Williamsburg am 12:30 p Executive Mtg. 6:30 pm am 12:30 February 1 2 3

7 MEMBER DATA The Post Quartermaster needs the following information for our computer system, therefore I am requesting each member to complete the following and return it to the Post. NAME SPOUSE ADDRESS TEL. CITY STATE ZIP CODE SOCIAL SECURITY # - - DATE OF BIRTH / / MILITARY BRANCH FOREIGN SERVICE (WHERE) (WHEN) CAMPAIGN MEDALS OR RIBBONS Mailing Address: VFW Post 7589 P O BOX 1873 MANASSAS, VA VFW 7589 FRANCIS CANNON POST POST OFFICERS Commander Sam Nealey Sr. Vice Cmdr Pete MacLeod Jr. Vice Cmdr Steve Meade Quartermaster Rick Raskin Adjutant Steve Meade Advocate Norb Beville Chaplain Ron Knowles Surgeon Norb Beville Off of the Day Joe Dazzo Guard Paul Purtell Service Officer Jack Battle Historian Ed Fishpaw Trustee 1 year John Depue Trustee 2 year Brad Bradshaw Trustee 3 year Joe Dazzo AUXILIARY OFFICERS President Nancy Dazzo Sr. Vice President Pam Braithwaite Jr. Vice President Jo Drummond Secretary Bettie Keyton Treasurer Valerie Nealey Chaplain Betty Knowles Conductress Kay Yeager Guard Patsy Gough Historian Cindy McIntyre Patriotic Instructor Yvonne Sutton Trustee 1 Kay Yeager Trustee 2 Jo Drummond Trustee 3 Polly Tibbs

8 November 2006 Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat VFW & Auxiliary Meetings 7:30 pm 7 Vote Veterans Day Mem. Svc 8:30 am Cemetery 9 am 12 Wal- Mart 9 am - 1 pm District Meeting 1 pm - Post Home Thanksgiving Executive Mtg. 6:30 pm The Cannon News Francis Cannon VFW Post 7589 PO Box 1873 Manassas, VA Support our Troops Non-Profit Org. U.S. Postage Paid Manassas, VA Permit No. 434 Return Service Requested November January 2007 Inside This Issue Holiday Social Pearl Harbor Day Our New Website -